Sick Inside
by musicofthenight32
Summary: Troy and Sharpay are dating but he kissed Gabriella and now she's sick inside. No one is talking to her except for a certain blonde boy...Can Ryan save Gabriella from becoming a social pariah? Troypay slight Troyella Ryella
1. Chapter 1

**I'm just a girl who  
kissed a boy who  
is in love with someone else   
I didn't mean to  
feel the way i do  
it just happened by itself**

Gabriella Montez chewed her lip worriedly the next morning, walking slowly down the East High, staring at the floor. Only one thought had consciously been on her mind for the last 12 hours: _What did I do…?_

She miraculously made it to her locker and numbly spun her combination, trying to clear the fog in her mind so she could get the right books out.

"Yo Troy!" Someone yelled from behind her and Gabriella jumped a mile and tried to melt into her locker. She cautiously turned her head and saw the one and only Troy Bolton swaggering as only the school's basket ball star could swagger down the hallway, surrounded, per usual, by his posse.

His eyes briefly met her face and she blushed and quickly dropped her eyes back into her locker, hoping to disappear.

"Troy!" Gabriella, if possible, felt even more frozen when she heard the oh so familiar trill of a certain blonde who was currently entangled in a passionate kiss with Troy.

Gabriella slammed her locker shut and slid into her homeroom quietly. She sat down behind Ryan as usual and kept her head ducked so when Troy and Sharpay came in, she wouldn't have to torture herself by looking at them.

Flashes of last night were flickering like an old movie in her mind and she shut her eyes and rested her head on her desk.

_Gabriella…_ He had murmured, her name sealing their lips together; he tasted like cinnamon. Gabriella was too shocked to do anything but kiss him back, letting his hot mouth send tingles down her spine.

**And now I'm sick inside  
yeah, it makes me wanna cry  
I'm so sorry about last night  
yeah, it happened so fast  
I wanted it to last  
in the moment it felt so right  
but now I'm sick inside**

Sharpay giggled as she tossed a note to Troy when Ms. Darbus wasn't looking. Troy opened the note, grinned and wrote a response back, flicking it to her.

"Ms. Montez, there is no sleeping in my class! Head up, now!" Ms. Darbus barked, clapping her hands and causing Gabriella to jump. She blinked rapidly and watching Troy and Sharpay sneaking flirtatious glances between each other.

_I'm a dirty mistress…I kiss another girl's boyfriend…I kissed Sharpay Evan's boyfriend…_ Gabriella thought miserably, feeling nausea swell inside her. She had felt feverish ever since last night, and not in the swoopy, twitipated way from Bambi but in the 'I could possibly throw up all over the place at any second because I feel so guilty' way.

Gabriella began chewing her nails as she absently took notes of Ms. Darbus' lecture; she was doing everything to keep from watching Sharpay guiltily.

"_It's a beautiful night," _He had murmured, _"It matches the beauty in front of me."_ Gabriella was still shivering from the way he had sounded when he had spoken to her; his voice had caressed her soul and she had stupidly believed he really loved her.

"_Gabriella…" _She had been drunk of the moment, blind to the truth.

**He stopped by my house  
we were hanging out  
he was wondering were you are   
we went walking  
we were just talking  
then he kissed me by his car**

When the bell rang, Gabriella stood up and began walking through the hallway, going to her next class. She sat down next to Taylor, her eyes boring into the back of Troy's head.

_Why? Why are you doing this to me?!_ She mentally screamed at him.

"_Gabby, Troy's here."_ Her mom had called.

"_Troy? Why...?"_ She asked herself, bounding down the steps. Troy really was there, standing in her front foyer, grinning a lopsided grin.

"_Troy, what are you doing here?"_ The brunette had asked incredulously.

"_Can't a guy hang out with his favorite co-star?"_ Troy was always saying these things, even though Gabriella wanted to shout: "You have _Sharpay Evans!_"

"_I, uh, don't see why not…Wanna watch a movie?" _ Gabriella was socially awkward, she always had been. She usually made a fool of herself just trying to make popcorn.

"_Sure."_ She and Troy ended up sitting on her bed but he wasn't watching the movie, he was looking at the pictures around Gabriella's room.

"_Do you know what Shar's doing tonight?"_ The good thing about Troy was he actually was a good actor; he could feign nonchalance like no other teenage boy Gabriella had met.

"_No, I'm not her keeper."_ Gabriella didn't mean to sound bitter; she just wished everything wasn't always about Sharpay.

"_You're right, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned her."_ So slick, Troy. Never let 'em see you sweat.

Gabriella came back into the present when her science teacher accidentally exploded a beaker. Gabriella found herself jumping in fright and ending up on the floor.

"Gabriella, are you alright?" Taylor asked, looking around embarrassedly as she helped the curly haired genius up.

_No._ "Yeah, sorry." Gabriella's face was on fire, Troy was watching her.

She turned her head, pretending to be adjusting her ponytail and caught Ryan's eye. Ryan gave her a small smile then shifted his eyes back to the teacher.

Gabriella grimaced at him and turned back so she was facing front. She looked up just in time to see Troy running his fingers through his hair, much like last night when they'd ended up walking around her street.

"_I just don't see how atoms could do that!"_ Troy insisted, merely making conversation.

"_That's because you're a simple minded creature." _Gabriella taunted, feeling like a five year old.

"_Or you're a complex minded creature!"_ Troy shot back.

Somehow, they were in front of her house, standing near his car. Gabriella cleared her throat and looked down at her feet, suddenly feeling awkward.

_Was this the end of the night? Do I just say goodnight and go back inside? _She thought helplessly.

Gabriella leaned against his car, her head spinning with these wild ideas so much she didn't notice that Troy had his body facing her now. Gabriella took a small step backwards and Troy took a larger step forwards so he was not even in inch away from her.

"_Gabriella…"_ Troy had his hand cupping the side of her face, tilting it up so they were kissing before she knew what was happening. Gabriella knew it was wrong, she knew she should stop but it was like a child's tongue to a cold pole, she couldn't pull away.

Troy brought his hands into her hair and she hesitantly wrapped them around his neck. When he pulled away, Gabriella couldn't breathe.

Troy just looked at her for a few moments then silently turned and got into his car. Gabriella stood on the side of the road, watching his taillights fade in the night.

**And now I'm sick inside  
yeah, it makes me wanna cry  
I'm so sorry about last night  
yeah, it happened so fast  
I wanted it to last  
in the moment it felt so right  
but now I'm sick inside**

During lunch, Gabriella sat with them. She couldn't bring herself to say anything to Sharpay and she didn't dare look at Troy. Instead, she stared at her unappetizing food and pretended to eat while Troy and Chad had an impromptu 'who can throw their tray the farthest' competition.

"Gabby, why aren't you eating?" Taylor asked concernedly.

"What?" Gabriella turned to Taylor, shaking her head to clear it.

"Your lunch, you haven't touched it." Taylor said slowly.

"Oh, uh, I'm just…not hungry." Gabriella sighed.

"Are you sick?" Taylor leaned over and felt Gabriella's forehead. Gabriella leaned back to get away from Taylor's hand.

_I'm sick inside._ "I'm just not feeling myself today, that's all." Gabriella chanced a glance at Troy who met her eyes and both blushed.

"Come on, Troy, you know I can throw farther than you!" Chad taunted.

Troy suddenly looked disinterested, "No you can't. Uh, I'll be right back…I just remembered I had to give something to Darbus." He muttered, pushing away from the table and shooting Gabriella a quick, meaningful look.

Gabriella watched Troy walk out of the cafeteria while everyone else began talking and eating again.

Gabriella waited a few minutes then pushed back as well, "I'm gonna get some Advil, I'll see you later." She told Taylor then also walked out of the cafeteria.

Taylor watched her friend worriedly then shrugged and went back to rolling her eyes at Chad.

Troy was waiting for Gabriella at the end of the hallway, leaning against a row of lockers casually. Gabriella hesitated then walked up to him and crossed her arm, staring over Troy's head.

"Gabriella…" He started.

_Just like last night…_ "No, Troy." Gabriella cut him off, surprising herself as much as she surprised Troy. "Let me talk: You don't get to get away with what you did. _You_ kissed _me_ last night even though _you_ are dating _Sharpay!_" Gabriella dropped her voice down low so no one would over hear them.

"Gabriella…" Troy tried again but Gabriella glared at him and he shut up.

"You knew it was wrong! _You're_ the one at fault!"

"Gabriella!" Troy almost yelled then they both looked around to make sure no one had heard him. "I don't see why you're freaking out about this, I mean, it's not that big a deal…right?"

"Not that big a deal?!" Gabriella almost shouted then dropped her voice, "Not that big a deal?! Are you crazy?! You cheated on your girlfriend last night and it's '_not that big a deal?!'_" She whispered fiercely at him.

She shook her head in disgust and shoved his shoulders so he slammed backwards into the lockers, "You're despicable." She hissed then spun on her heel and stormed away, wiping angry tears from her eyes.

**Now I'm stuck with this feeling in the pit of my soul  
guess I should of had a little self control  
I knew that it was wrong, I admit it  
I wish there was a way that I could make it alright  
I really wanna tell you that I put up a fight  
but that would be a lie**

Gabriella threw herself down on the steps of the stage and sobbed into her hands.

_What did I ever see in him?! He's the most shallow, most unbelievable, most, ugh, frustrating boy I've ever met! I can't believe I actually liked him!_ She ranted in her head, trying to stifle her tears.

_You know you liked it…_ Her subconscious teased meanly.

Gabriella wiped at her face furiously, "I did not like it!" She lied out loud.

_How could I do this to Sharpay? No one deserves this…Even if she is a bitch…Why is she even with him?!_ Gabriella got up and began pacing back and forth in front of the stage.

_Maybe I could explain everything that happened to her so she realizes that _he_ started it! But then she'd want to know how come I didn't push him away…I guess I can't lie my way out of this._

**And now I'm sick inside  
yeah, it makes me wanna cry  
I'm so sorry about last night  
yeah, it happened so fast  
I wanted it to last  
in the moment it felt so right  
but now I'm sick inside **

The bell rang. Gabriella didn't move. She stayed in the auditorium through the next period and the one after that. No one came in to check on her, no one cared that she, Gabriella Montez, 'freaky math girl,' was skipping class.

Gabriella spent the two free periods thinking about everything that had happened, trying to tighten the reigns on her guilt.

She couldn't help but feel terrible about what happened; she never wanted to be 'the other woman;' she never wanted to cause someone pain; she never wanted to put herself through this torture of trying to undo something that couldn't be erased.

Maybe she was just too empathetic, maybe she was too soft but Gabriella couldn't ease the raging cramp she had deep inside. This was something Midol couldn't solve. Only forgiveness could free her from this punishment and she didn't see that happening anytime soon.

**Now I'm sick inside  
yeah, it makes me wanna cry  
in the moment it felt so right**

Gabriella heard students moving around outside and she could pick up random snippets of conversation.

"I heard he slept with her!"

"No way!"

Gabriella's ears perked up, were people talking about her?

"Wanna go out with me tonight?"

"Ew, you're gross."

Eh, maybe not.

"Hey Sharpay, can I talk to you?" Gabriella froze again; it was Troy's voice!

"Sure Troy, what's up?" Sharpay simpered.

Gabriella began chewing her lip, her tainted lips, as Troy pulled Sharpay aside. Troy and Sharpay were drowned out by passing students and Gabriella inwardly cursed them for being so loud.

She was waiting for the bomb to drop, for the moment of truth to be revealed, feeling the calmness before the storm.

"YOU WHAT?!" Everyone in the school heard Sharpay scream in anguish and the unmistakable sound of Troy's facing being slapped.

Gabriella stepped closer to the stage as the auditorium door slammed open and Sharpay strutted in, "YOU!" Her voice echoed.

Gabriella took a deep breath then turned to face the blonde beauty's wrath.

**I'm just a girl who  
kissed a boy who  
is in love with you**

**The song is Sick Inside by Hope Partlow. This isn't my best but I've never been very good with song fics. I might make this more than a oneshot but I haven't decided yet. Please review, I need help decided if I should continue or not. Thanks for reading, XOXO! **


	2. Chapter 2

"There she goes."

"Can you believe her?"

"Poor Sharpay."

"She's so lucky…_Troy Bolton_!"

These sentiments followed Gabriella everywhere she went for the next week and a half. No one was talking to her anymore, not after what _she _(Gabriella) did.

_Of course they take her side…_ Gabriella thought bitterly as she walked into the cafeteria and walked towards her usual table. Everyone fell silent and stared at their food, pretending not to have seen her. Gabriella bit her lip to keep from yelling at them and sat down at an empty table, blinking rapidly to keep the tears at bay.

"Gotta love teenage hormones." A familiar voice said from behind her and Gabriella jumped a mile and turned in her chair. Ryan gave her an apologetic smile and sat down across from her.

"God Ryan!" Gabriella had a hand over her heart but was grinning at him just the same.

"I figured you could use a distraction." He shrugged. Ryan Evans; He sure had changed since the whole Twinkle Towne thing. Now he wore flip flops and normal shirts and jeans; He had grown out his hair then shocked everyone by shaving it off so his cousin, who had lost her hair from leukemia, would feel better about shaving her own hair off. Gabriella surveyed him as he began peeling his orange; today he sported a normal grey shirt and dark jeans.

"Are you growing your hair out again?" She asked conversationally, now picking at her chicken sandwich.

"I haven't decided yet." Ryan shrugged, briefly running his fingers through his hair, which was getting back to its tousled state from before (**A/N: Think like on the HSM2 Playback thing or on the Alice website.**).

"I liked it bald." Gabriella remarked then instantly blushed from what she'd said.

Ryan gave her a sly smile, "Oh really?" He wiggled his eyebrows exaggeratedly at her and she giggled and rolled her eyes good naturedly back. Ryan was the only one she could do this strange half flirting, half making a fool of herself thing in front of without worrying about what he thought of her.

Loud laughter was heard from the table of her so called friends and Gabriella glanced under her arm. Sharpay, Chad, Taylor, Kelsi, Jason and Zeke were all laughing at something that apparently Troy had said; Troy was tilting back in his chair, one arm casually slung over Sharpay's shoulders.

"I bet it wasn't that funny." Ryan said quietly and she gave him a small smile.

"Yeah…" She muttered, pushing her food aside and leaning her chin on her fist.

"I don't get it!" Ryan exclaimed suddenly, causing Gabriella to jump again; Ryan never raised his voice. "It's so idiotic! The way they've just thrown you under the bus and all because Troy kissed you! Wouldn't it make more sense for _Troy_ to be shunned?!" Ryan ranted, surprising himself.

Gabriella stared at him in shock then got over it and shook her head, "I never won a championship for the school." She murmured, picking absently at her thumb nail.

"That's just shallow." Ryan finished his rant, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms.

Gabriella gave him a bemused look and he cocked an eyebrow at her, "What?"

"Nothing." Gabriella shook her head, smiling oddly.

"You are an odd duck, Gabriella Montez." Ryan stated as the bell rang. The blonde actor and the brunette singer stood up and threw their lunches away. They quickly walked past the slowly vacating table and Ryan held the door for Gabriella.

As they parted at the end of the hallway, Gabriella called over her shoulder, "You're just as strange, Ryan Evans." Ryan gave her his signature lopsided grin then walked away.

_**I'm sick inside…**_

At the end of the day, Gabriella grabbed her books then ducked her head, trying to get out of school as fast as possible. As she was crossing the parking lot, she bumped into someone and almost fell to the ground but caught herself just in time.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean-" Gabriella gushed, straightening the books in her arms and looking up only to see Sharpay giving her a cool stare.

"Didn't mean to what?" Sharpay asked smoothly.

"Bump into you…" Gabriella muttered, staring at the ground to avoid Sharpay's warm brown eyes freezing her to the spot.

"Just like you didn't mean to kiss my boyfriend?" Sharpay's voice was dripping with ice. Gabriella turned pink but didn't say anything.

"What? Not brave enough to even stand up to the girl you're lover is dating?"

"He's not my lover." Gabriella defended softly.

"What was that?" Sharpay titled her head.

"He's not my lover." Gabriella repeated, finally lifting her head. Sharpay just raised an eyebrow at her, a cruel smile on her face.

"Call it what you want, it's adultery and I'm not letting you live it down." Sharpay stepped closer to poor Gabriella threateningly.

"Sharpay!" Ryan walked up briskly, giving his twin a forced smile, "What's going on here?" He asked tightly.

Sharpay gave him her 'I just won a Tony award' smile, "Nothing, Ry. Let's go." Then she shot a quick glare at Gabriella and spun on her heel, clicking her way back to her car.

Ryan sighed heavily and watched his sister walk away. "Gabriella-" He started to apologize for Sharpay but Gabriella just raised a hand to silence him.

"It's okay." Her voice was shaking but she met his eyes boldly, "Whatever, right?" Ryan was about to talk to her again but she pressed her lips together and brushed past him to her own car.

Ryan closed his eyes as she walked past, breathing hard through his nose to keep his aggravation in check. When he got to the car, he wouldn't speak to Sharpay.

"God Ryan, what's your major malfunction?" Sharpay demanded as they pulled into their driveway.

"You are." Ryan stated, parking the car then getting out, slamming the door over her answer. Ryan pulled his bag out of the backseat then walked up to the house, leaving Sharpay scrambling after him.

"Me?!" She shrieked, "What do you mean me?!"

Ryan opened the front door and surpassed his mother in the corridor. He ran up the stairs to his room and threw himself down on his bed.

"Ryan Evans, you open this door right now!" Sharpay yelled but Ryan ignored her, opening his laptop to check his e-mail. Sharpay stood outside his door for about a half hour, knocking incessantly. Finally, she got bored and went back to her room.

Ryan rolled his eyes at his sister's antics and began strumming his guitar. He began humming a random tune then strumming to it then he began singing: "I shouldn't love you but I want to, I just can't look away. I shouldn't love you but I can't move, I can't look away…" He sang softly to himself.

He was going to continue but his door flew open, revealing a disheveled looking Sharpay. "Ryan Norbert Evans, what the hell is your problem?!" She shouted.

Ryan jumped and dropped his guitar, "Sharpay Idina Evans, what the hell is _your_ problem?!" He yelled back. Ryan and Sharpay's parents were big on Broadway, hence the middle names.

Sharpay looked aghast, "Did you just raise your voice at _me_?!" She whispered, looking like she couldn't decide if she was sad or pissed off. Apparently, she went with pissed off, "How dare you yell at me after you make some rude comment and storm away from me?!"

Ryan gave her an unflinching stare, "Sharpay, why are you being so cruel to Gabriella?"

Sharpay laughed like she couldn't believe Ryan had to ask that question. "Are you kidding?! That bitch kissed my boyfriend! I don't have to pretend to like her anymore!"

"Sharpay, that's ridiculous! Even Troy said that he kissed her!" Ryan defended.

"Yeah but he apologized!"

"So did Gabriella!"

Sharpay merely screamed in frustration at him then whirled around and stormed back to her room, the slam of her door echoing in the spacious house.

Ryan set his jaw, a vein twitching in it as he pulled off his jeans and shirt, pulled on a pair of gym shorts and a black tee then tied his running shoes and left the house. He wiggled his arms and legs to loosen them up then started jogging down the street, thinking that the only thing he could do was help Gabriella save herself from becoming a sure social pariah.

**I'm experimenting with some stuff, I still don't really know if I'll continue this so I need feedback on what you think! Thanks for those who did review, I love them! So, tell me what you think and what you think I should do! Thanks, XOXO**


	3. Chapter 3

"Can you believe that traitor?!" Sharpay exclaimed, resting her head against Troy's stomach again. "Shar-" Troy started but she sat up again. "Oh and he accused _me_ of being a bitch; not _Gabriella_, the girl who kissed _my_ boyfriend, _me!_" She fell against him again.

"Sharpay-"

She sat up once more, "My own brother betrayed me!" then fell back again. 

"Sharpay!" Troy half-yelled.

"What?!" She groaned.

"I don't really have anything to say; normally I say 'Sharpay' and you ignore me…" Troy mumbled sheepishly. Sharpay rolled her eyes at him but giggled anyway.

"You know, I've never trusted Ryan."

"Really?" Sharpay asked, sounding bored.

"Yeah, ever since the first day of kindergarten and he asked me to bow down to him; I obviously said 'no' and kept playing with my monster truck so he kicked it and said I had to and I asked 'why?' and he told me his name meant 'king' and mine only meant 'foot soldier' and that he was better than me so I had to bow. I threw sand at him and he started crying and told Miss Adams on me."

Sharpay began laughing hysterically, "You don't trust my brother because he asked you to _bow to him_?!" She cackled.

"Hey, it was pretty mean for a five year old." Troy defended. Sharpay finally stopped laughing, "Okay Troy, while you stew about the meaning of your name, let's think of a way to stop that backstabber before he really screws with our lives." Troy sighed heavily as Sharpay began thinking of plans.

The next morning, Gabriella walked into the school and slid to her locker, quickly pulling her books out and hiding in homeroom. She read peacefully by herself until she heard the ever so annoying clacking of Sharpay Evans' high heels coming down the hall. Gabriella slid down in her seat but Sharpay didn't come inside the room, thankfully.

Ryan walked inside, wearing a tight black t-shirt and dark jeans, also sporting a black and white checkered hat. He smiled at Gabriella and sat down in front of her. "What's the story, morning glory?"

Gabriella began giggling and covered her mouth with her hand, "Do you get these off Popsicle sticks or what?" She teased.

Ryan pretended to look hurt, "You mean you don't find them endearing and charming?" Gabriella shook her head, trying not to smile; he began fake sobbing into his hands.

"Alright, alright, quit it before your eyes go puffy!" Gabriella clapped her hands and he lifted his head, a perfect smile on his face. As they'd been talking, the rest of the class had come in and taken their seats.

"Attention, attention!" Ms. Darbus shouted over the din and everyone slowly fell silent. She began class and Gabriella quickly went to work on her note taking. Ryan began pretending to be paying attention to what the thespian fanatic was saying while really he was thinking of his plan to help Gabriella.

_Let's see, who should I start to break first…Obviously, Troy and Sharpay are out of the question; Chad is too loyal a friend to help me, even if we are baseball teammates; Zeke is too in love with Sharpay to see how evil she is; Jason's an idiot, enough said; Kelsi? Hm, she's a maybe; Taylor! Duh, Gabriella's best friend!_ Ryan grinned to himself and anxiously waited for class to end.

During chemistry next period, Ryan subtly sat closer to Taylor then, when the teacher wasn't looking, began mixing random chemicals and solutions until it exploded his beaker and everyone screamed.

"Mr. Evans, what in God's name did you do?!" The teacher shrieked, rushing over and gathering up the glass while Ryan apologized profusely and wiped up the counter top. "Clearly, you need more help. Uh, let's see…" The teacher tapped her lip as she surveyed the class, "Ah, Miss McKessie, could you please switch with Mr. Levin so you can help Mr. Evans here." Ryan pretended to groan while Taylor rolled her eyes and moved over next to him.

The teacher began talking again, instructing the students on how to do the experiment. "Okay, this is really easy: just mix these two solutions and let them simmer and observe the changes." Taylor intoned. Ryan nodded like he was really interested and began doing what she said.

He purposely messed up a measurement and Taylor grabbed his wrist, pulling it away from the beaker. "Ryan, you have to _use_ the measuring cup, not stare at it!" She scolded.

"Sorry Taylor." Ryan mumbled sheepishly.

"Its okay, Ryan." Taylor sighed, beginning to take notes on the mixture's reactions.

"Why aren't you working with Gabriella?" He asked lightly.

"Because I was put with you." She replied in a 'duh' voice.

"I meant before we determined I would never become a chemist." Ryan corrected smoothly.

Taylor smiled then reminded herself who she was talking to and stopped, "It's not really any of your business."

"Fair enough." Ryan nodded amiably as the bell rang and he helped her clean up.

"But don't you ever miss your best friend?" He asked innocently. Taylor bit her lip and turned to reply then saw Chad and brushed past Ryan and put her arm around him.

Ryan shrugged then continued thinking through his classes until school ended. "Gabriella!" He yelled, chasing the brunette down at the end of the day.

Gabriella spun around and smiled in relief, "Hey Ry!" She waved. He ran up to her and breathed heavily, "Jeez girl, in a hurry?" He panted. "Sorry!" She giggled.

Ryan shook his head and smiled, offering her his arm. "Want to do something tonight?"

"Hm, I don't know…Like what?" Gabriella turned her head to him as she walked and he pulled her out of the way of an open door.

"Uh…" Ryan hadn't thought that far, "We could go get coffee and walk around in the moonlight until music starts playing and we begin slow dancing in the park. Then it will start raining and we'll get stuck under the slide but we won't care because we have coffee."

Gabriella blinked rapidly as she absorbed this then burst out laughing and shoved him on the arm, "Oh…My Lanta." She gasped, clutching her stomach.

Ryan just watched her bemusedly, "You never answered me." He pointed out.

"Okay, first of all: It's not going to rain tonight. And secondly, I can't even dance." Ryan stopped in place, "Gabriella Montez, are you seriously saying that you can't dance?"

"Uh…Ya-huh." Gabriella nodded vigorously.

"Well then, come on over tonight, I'll teach you how." He began walking again and this time, Gabriella froze. "Are you crazy?! You're going to teach _me_ how to dance?!"

"Uh…Ya-huh." He imitated her and began pulling her out of the building.

"Come on, Ry, I really can't dance. I have no rhythm, no flow and no pep! Not to mention, no coordination." She pleaded. Ryan just snorted at her, "Come on, Gabi, I'll teach you. Just come over to my house tonight!"

"I'd love to, really I would. But I have to stay home tonight, I'll be alone and mom said I can't leave in case the house burns itself down or something." Ryan just raised his eyebrows at her. "It's true!" She defended.

"Okay, okay, some other night then." Ryan gave in, deciding he might as well work more on his plan that night.

"Thanks Ry!" Gabriella hugged him tightly then jumped in her car. "No problem, see you later." She waved as she drove away and he slowly walked back to his car. Sharpay had gone home with Troy for dinner so he was on his own this time.

When the blonde actor got him, he talked to his mom for a few hours then escaped to his room and picked up his guitar again. "I shouldn't love you but I want to, I just can't look away. I shouldn't love you but I can't move, I can't look away. I shouldn't love you but I want to, I just can't turn away. I shouldn't see you but I can't move, I can't look away. And I don't know how to be fine when I'm not cause I don't know how to make the feeling stop."

"Ryan, dinner time!" His mother called and Ryan sighed, putting his guitar away and trotting down the steps.

**Yeah, it makes me wanna cry**

Meanwhile, Gabriella drove home and spent two hours doing her homework then raided her fridge for dinner. As she was digging through her freezer, a loud clap of thunder boomed and shook the house, causing Gabriella to scream. The heavens opened up and rain pounded the house while Gabriella sprinted to close all the windows. Another clap of thunder echoed through the town and Gabriella jumped.

She bit her nails nervously as lightning lit up her backyard and wind shook her house. The brunette called her mom's work but got no answer so she curled up on the floor of her kitchen and hugged her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth.

Every time thunder sounded, she would jump and bit her nails more. The lights began flickering. "Oh God, please don't go out, please don't go out, please don't go out…" She muttered to herself.

She began fumbling for her cell phone but before she could get to it, a loud cracking sound came as lightning snapped something outside and she was instantly doused in darkness.

She felt around a bit more until she felt her cell phone and flicked it open, quickly dialing and hitting send.

"Hello?" Came a voice on the other end.

"Ry?" She whispered, "Could you come over?"

**Okay, as always, sorry for taking so long for updating! It's been so crazazy around here with the school stuff going on! Check out my profile for a link to the nominations for fanfiction awards! I'm nominated for this story! Yay me! Thank you for the reviews, I appreciate them so much! XOXO**


	4. Chapter 4

"Thank you so much for coming over, Ryan." Gabriella gushed, handing him a towel to wipe the rain out of his hair and off his face.

"Anytime, Gabs. I didn't know you were afraid of a little thunderstorm." He teased, gratefully taking the towel off her hands. "I'm not scared!" She insisted then jumped a foot in the air from a clap of thunder.

"Oh really?" Ryan smirked at her in the darkness as she rolled her eyes and lead him into her house. "So…this is my house…" She said lamely and Ryan laughed. "Really? I didn't realize that!"

Gabriella blushed and was thankful for the power outage. She fumbled around and found a flash light then flicked it on and lead him around. "This is the kitchen…" She spun the beam around a few times, "And the living room," She illuminated the small room, "And mom's office," She shined the light from the doorway then brought him upstairs, "And here's the laundry room, the bathroom, the closet, mom's room, the guest room," She paused at each one then lead him down the hall, "And my room." She leaned against the doorway. Ryan looked around interestedly, not seeing much but appreciating the tour anyway.

"So…wanna go downstairs?" She offered awkwardly. "Sure." Ryan nodded gamely and walked back downstairs with her. "We could scrounge for food…" Gabriella offered, hating herself for being so awkward.

"That sounds enticing." Ryan quipped and she rolled her eyes good naturedly and shoved him. "Okay…now, which cabinet has food in it…?" Gabriella tapped her lip while trying to remember.

"I couldn't tell ya." Ryan sat on the counter so he'd be out of the way. Gabriella began groping around, "No, no, no, no…" She muttered, sifting through the cabinets; she moved over to the one Ryan was sitting near and began going through it, "No, no, no…"

"Gabriella?"

"Yeah, Ry?"

"Could you release my thigh?" "OH!" Gabriella snatched her hand away from what she'd assumed was a dish towel on the counter, "Sorry!" She heard Ryan laughing and blushed harder as she quickly went to the opposite end of the kitchen to look.

"Aha!" Gabriella clapped, pulling out a few jars and grabbing bread. "What?"

"Peanut butter and jelly! It's the perfect remedy for an icky night!"

"'Icky?' Is that on the SAT prep list?" Ryan chuckled, jumping off the counter to help her. "Yes, in fact it is!" Gabriella lied, spreading peanut butter across the bread while he spread jelly on the other slices. He was about to mash the breads together when she stopped him and sprinkled something onto them. "Is that crack for smart people?"

"No, you goof! It's cinnamon!" She handed him a sandwich and giggled. They sat on the kitchen floor and ate the sandwiches, chatting idly about chemistry and hair color. Gabriella was getting very sleepy but didn't want Ryan to leave so she casually rested her head on his shoulder as they talked.

"…Which is why Sharpay has hair extensions." He concluded. Silence. "Gabriella? My story wasn't that bad, was it?" He joked. More silence. "Gabby?" He shifted his shoulder and she slid into his lap. "Either she's dead or she fell asleep…" He whispered to himself, titling her head up so he could feel if she was breathing or not. "Yay, she's not dead! That means no paper work for Ryan!" He laughed softly then adjusted himself against the cabinets and decided to keep her in his lap because he didn't want to navigate upstairs with her in his arms in the dark.

Ryan guessed he fell asleep too because a few hours later, light was interrupting his pleasant dream and someone was tapping something. He blinked his eyes blearily, trying to adjust to the sudden light. Miss Montez was standing over them, tapping her foot incessantly. "Hello." She said tightly.

Ryan was instantly awake, shaking Gabriella, who was still in his lap. "Hey…" Ryan blushed a little, shaking Gabriella harder. Gabriella groaned as she sat up, "Whaaat?" She whined, her eyes still closed.

"Something you want to tell me, Gabriella?" Gabriella's mom looked furious. "Mom?" Gabriella opened her eyes as well, squinting in the harsh light, "What…?" She turned and saw Ryan and realized she'd fallen asleep in the kitchen with him, "Mom, it's not what you think!" Gabriella said quickly.

"Mmmhmmm." Miss Montez didn't seem to believe her, "Then what is it?" She didn't give Gabriella a chance to explain, "Because it looks to me like you invited a boy over when I wasn't home when you know that I don't allow _anyone_ to be here when I'm not home at night. It also looks like you couldn't even make it upstairs."

"No, no, no, mom! That's not it at all."

"Really, Miss Montez, I just came here because Gabriella was scared and"

"I think it's time you went home now, young man." Miss Montez interrupted. Ryan sighed as he stood up and stretched then nodded at both Montez's and left quickly. Miss Montez waited till he was gone then turned back to Gabriella who had gotten to her feet and fixed her hair. "Mom, I-" "Just…go to bed." Miss Montez said wearily, running her hand through her hair and stepping back so Gabriella could run upstairs.

Gabriella threw herself onto her bed and hugged a pillow to her chest, falling asleep after a long time.

_**I'm so sorry about last night…**_

Ryan drove home and bounded up the steps to his house, quietly letting himself in and trying to get to his room before anyone else noticed. _Damn…_ A light flicked on and a chair spun around; Sharpay.

"Hello Ryan." She smiled sweetly. "Hey Shar…" Ryan sighed heavily and turned back to her. "Have a nice night?" She titled her head and batted her lashes.

"Not particularly." He desperately wanted to get to his guitar. "Aw, too bad." Sharpay feigned sadness; hey, she hadn't been in seventeen school productions for nothing! "So…what did you do?"

"Uh…Ate peanut butter and jelly and chilled…" Ryan was getting tired of his sister.

"How sweet." Sharpay commented.

"Right, listen, Shar, I'm tired." Ryan started for the stairs again but Sharpay cut him off. "Oh, of course! Go to bed, rest up…" she stood up and sauntered towards him, "Just remember: Blood comes before brunette, you pick her and you lose me." She whispered in his ear as she brushed past him, "Nighty night." She waggled her fingers at him and disappeared up the stairs.

Ryan groaned and banged his head back against the wall in annoyance then turned and dragged himself to his room dejectedly.

Both teens remained incommunicado for the whole weekend; Gabriella because she was grounded and Ryan because he was confused. Come Monday morning, Ryan had an orchid resting on Gabriella's desk and was leaning against the back board waiting for her. Gabriella came in, keeping her head down as always and moved swiftly to her seat. She paused when she saw the flower and lifted it up lightly in her fingers, twirling it around and smiling.

Ryan stepped up behind her, "That's an apology for getting you grounded." He murmured and Gabriella jumped then turned and smiled at him.

"It's no problem, Ry. Mom was just tired that night and stuff…I explained it all to her and she understands now. At least I think she does…" Gabriella giggled helplessly. Ryan just smiled at her and sat down in his seat as the bell rang. Ryan and the rest of the gang snoozed through Darbus' class then rushed out the door for their next period.

Ryan sat down next to Taylor in Chemistry. "Good morning, Taylor." He greeted, "How was your weekend?" He asked politely. "Hello Ryan." Taylor replied stiffly, "Fine. And yours?" "Great." He lied, flashing his signature smile.

Taylor giggled then stopped herself and began working. Ryan dejectedly pulled out his books and worked tiredly on his experiment. Taylor began humming 'Fame' under her breath as she observed their chemical reaction. "Baby, hold me tight, cause you can make it right. You can shoot me straight to the top, give me love and take all I've got to give." She didn't seem to notice she was singing so Ryan softly joined her. "Baby, I'll be tough, too much is not enough. I can ride your heart till it breaks, ooh, I got what it takes." Taylor abruptly stopped when she realized he was singing with her.

"Sorry." Her face was tinted pink. "No problem, I love that movie so it's all good." Ryan brushed it off and continued working. "Um…Ryan…?" Taylor asked cautiously.

"Yeah?" Ryan lifted his head to look at her. "You know that question you asked me yesterday?" She bit her lip. "Yup, what about it?" The bell rang as Taylor leaned forward, "Yeah, I miss her. More than you could know." Then she grabbed her bag and bolted out the door.

Ryan smirked as he leaned back in his seat, "I knew it…"

**Okay, let me start by saying SORRY! School started this week and I haven't had any time! I'll try to update weekly but it might not work out so well…The song is Fame from the movie Fame! Thank you so much for the reviews and as always, keep them coming! XOXO**


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